LAWRENCE: Man charged with attack on officer

By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
   A Somerset man has been charged with aggravated assault on a police officer, resisting arrest and obstructing justice after he got into an altercation with Police Officer Richard Laird III around 6:30 p.m. on May 4, according to police Lt. Charles B. Edgar.
   Officer Laird was attempting to stop Warren Bell, 33, of Somerset, for talking on a cell phone while he was driving on Princeton Avenue, Lt. Edgar said. The police officer turned on his patrol car’s red-and-blue lights to initiate a traffic stop, but Mr. Bell did not stop until he reached the Quick-Chek convenience store parking lot at Brunswick Circle.
   Mr. Bell got out of his car, despite Officer Laird’s commands for him to stay in his car, Lt. Edgar said. The man went to the other side of his car and was reaching in for an unknown object.
   At that point, Officer Laird told Mr. Bell he was under arrest, Lt. Edgar said. A fight ensued. Two bystanders helped the officer subdue Mr. Bell until additional police officers arrived, he said.